~ Writing my way to harmony within and without

An inclusive society – a distant dream?

I try to stay positive, I like to stay positive, and in my work I am fortunate to meet several children and individuals who inspire me to stay positive, yet there are days when the gloom of certain realities of our society affect my positivity. Today is one such day!

A couple of days back the results of the Class 10 exams of Gujarat Board released. Two of the toppers were from ‘marginalised’ groups, one was the daughter of a daily wage labourer and another a visually impaired boy and there were two articles in a national newspaper. While I felt some joy at the triumph of the resilience of these children to fight their battles in a society which is more often than not discriminatory to their needs, I realise more strongly than ever that all children do not have access to the same opportunities.

I look at the reality that my students live everyday – the discrimination, the name calling, the bullying. It is amazing that so many of them are able to fight their way through so many barriers and continue in school. I marvel at the strength of my students, at their resilience. It is unacceptable that getting a school education must be so difficult.The parents of my students in mainstream schools worry everyday that there will be a call from the school which will force them to take their children out of the school and their hunt for another school that will ‘accept’ their child will have to start again. If its not about pulling their child out of school, it is the constant reminder of the student’s ‘inadequacies’ to fit into a mainstream classroom – hyperactive, agressive, stubborn, dyslexic, slow learner.

I think schools need to start equipping themselves with strategies and personnel to help them manage diverse classrooms. They must get trained teachers or psychologists, or special educators to handle a classroom that hosts children with different needs and different levels of energy. They need to embrace disability as part of diversity. In a country with a population like India’s we are going to need mainstream schools accepting children with different abilities if we want to achieve the goal of education for all. Besides only an inclusive education system could result in an inclusive society. Only if a child grows up in a diverse environment will he learn to value his differences and respect those of others.

Inclusive schools are an urgent need but while we are waiting for this must we abandon the idea of my students with autism, down’s syndrome, learning disability, ADHD integrating these schools? Must we wait for schools to be equipped so as to ensure students like mine do not suffer discrimination? In search of our ideal of inclusion are we sacrificing the self esteem of our ‘special’ students? Are we not ready for inclusion yet? Because the reality of today is that most of my students with special needs will end up going to special needs schools by the end of their school education (what I presume is also true for the majority of India), but we must not stop trying to change that.More and more parent groups, teachers and professionals in India are working towards inclusive schools. Though it remains a miniscule minority it is their presence that keeps me positive.

Share this:

Like this:

Post navigation

2 thoughts on “An inclusive society – a distant dream?”

Love this post. Yes, it isn't ideal now but it will be. I see more and more people turning to teaching now, people who never thought they'd be teachers – software engineers, theatre people…bringing with them a rich and diverse skills sets and enthusiasm.

Not enough but more and more every year. More resources for teachers to go to, newer ways of teaching that are positive for both teacher and child. We'll get there or close in this lifetime.

In the meantime, do soldier on. The way I see it, if a parent with a differently abled child can, I surely can.